


It's the decathlon final.

by Want_to_read234



Series: My First Whumptober (2020) [14]
Category: Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Hostage Situations, Identity Reveal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-16
Updated: 2020-10-16
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:15:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27049291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Want_to_read234/pseuds/Want_to_read234
Summary: Peter has travelled to California for the Academic Decathlon Finals. All he wanted was a weekend where he could hang out with his friends and compete like a normal teenager.How was he to know that Spider-Man would be needed in California? Oh, and that some creeps would take the Decathlon hostage.Day 16: Forced to Beg / Shoot the Hostage (threatened) & Day 17: Wrongfully Accused
Relationships: Ned Leeds & Peter Parker, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: My First Whumptober (2020) [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1948717
Comments: 13
Kudos: 162
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	It's the decathlon final.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, 
> 
> So another combined two day prompts. I'm not entirely sure where this one was going, but it went.
> 
> Enjoy!

This must be a sign.

Peter sighs as he ducks out minutes before the National Decathlon final is about to start. Running to jump into his Spider suit. This is the second year in a row he is going to miss it.

It was bad enough last year when he missed it in DC because he got trapped in the storage vault after following the vulture. He had went on that trip specifically to track the bad guys, so as much as he hadn’t wanted to miss the competition he at least could understand it.

But this year was supposed to be different.

This year the finals were being held in California. The weather was lovely, and he was looking forward to the mini break the competition would provide.

Before he left Queens, he had arranged for Mr Stark to cover his usual patrols with the Iron Man suits so New York had been left in good hands. Everything was being taken care off. He didn’t have any currently active Spider-man investigations going on.

He was here as just Peter Parker. The high school nerd who was going to kick ass at the final.

Except now he wasn’t.

The team were all gathered round backstage, waiting to go take their seats when someone gasped watching the tv in the corner. Turning to watch, there was a live news report following an out of control truck heading straight towards a school. They were reporting that there was no way to stop the truck and that there was no time to evacuate the school in time.

Sighing, he shot Ned a look, at which his best friend nodded and moved to block him from sight as he ran for the exit. Maybe if he was quick, he could make it back in time for the second half of the competition. He huffed a breath, shaking his head.

MJ was going to kill him either way.

Swinging through the streets of California was different to swinging through New York. There weren’t as many tall buildings, which meant that Peters swings were shorter but more frequent. Making his journey bumpier than usual.

Even with the unfamiliar swinging pattern he still made it to the school on time. Bracing himself in front of the truck, his muscles shook as he caught the weight of it. His feet were sliding beneath him. The sheer force pushing him back a couple inches, as the truck rose of the ground, but it came to a stop.

Breathing heavily, he dropped the truck in front of him as the sound of applause reached his ears. Glancing around he saw bystanders and school children watching him and celebrating the near miss. There was a news chopper circling somewhere in the sky above him as he sunk down to sit on the curb for a minute. Gently massaging his arms, he kept his eyes trained on the ground.

The truck had been heavier than he anticipated. His muscles were left feeling like jelly.

Once his breathing had returned to normal, he shook out his arms and slowly stood. Flexing his hands, he aimed in the direction of the Decathlon final and took off, hoping for a quick swing back.

Checking the time with Karen, she confirmed he would definitely be back in time for the second half. He grinned to himself at the thought of actually being able to take part in the final this year.

Asking Karen to tune into the Decathlon finals broadcast, his smile dropped. He felt ice settle in his stomach as he took in the faces of his teammates.

Where he should have seen the happy faces of his teammates concentrating and answering questions, he saw terrified faces. They were all gathered in a group on the ground, hands tied behind their backs.

But that wasn’t the worst part.

No, the worst part, was the men surrounding the students on the stage. The men wearing all black and holding guns.

Guns that were aimed at the students.

The men looked to be talking but the broadcast wasn’t picking up what they were saying.

His arms were burning with the strain of the fast swinging so soon after stopping the truck, but he didn’t have much choice. His team was in danger because he left them alone. He didn’t even know why those men were there. What could they possibly want to achieve from holding a decathlon final hostage?

Arriving back at the hotel, he crawled along the wall to the window leading to the backstage area he had left earlier. Peering over the edge, he could see at least 15 men patrolling the stage. All armed. He couldn’t see anyone in the audience, so maybe they had been evacuated since it was just the kids and teachers from Midtown and the opposing school left in the hall.

Squeezing through the small space, he crept along the wall towards the stage. Keeping out of sight until he could form a plan.

“Just give it time. You saw the news footage; he was spotted less than a mile from here. Trust me. He will be here.” One of the armed men was saying from his spot on the stage, talking to another who was angrily pacing back and forth in front of the scared students.

They were obviously waiting for someone, Peter just wished he could work out who. His eyes darted to the hostages, who were whimpering from their spot on the floor. Peter couldn’t blame them for being scared while being held at gun point, but he had to focus on how to get them out of there.

“He better be. I want my revenge. I’ve waited long enough,” ground out the pacing man.

The original man stepped forward, “And you will. He will pay for the death of your sister. I promise you that.”

The pacing man finally stopped to stare at the hostages. “What if we raise the stakes? Think that will hurry our little spider along?”

Oh, that doesn’t sound good. “Karen, can you let Mr Stark know I need back up? And can you block the broadcasting signal for the competition? We don’t need this being broadcast anywhere.” he breathed, hoping no one would hear him.

“Sure thing Peter. He is currently half an hour away. He says you should wait for him.” Karen informed him.

“I don’t think that’s going to work Karen.” He watched as the man approached MJ, grabbing her arm to pull her towards him. She let out a yelp of surprise, and tried to get away but she wasn’t strong enough to break his grip.

Before he had time to think it through, Peter was leaping down from the ceiling onto the stage. “So I heard someone was looking for a spider? Can I help? Cause I mean usually you don’t need guns to find them.”

The man holding MJ sneered at him, as he pulled MJ against his chest, holding the gun against her temple. Freezing in his step, Peter raised his hands in surrender.

“Please just the let the hostages go. We can talk this out.”

“I don’t think so Spider-Man,” the man ground out. “it will be easier to get you to cooperate with some leverage on our side.”

Swallowing through the dryness in his throat, Peter nodded his head. “Ok, so you want me to cooperate. What can I do for you?”

“We want you to pay.”

“Well that’s original,” he snorted before he could stop it.

The man pressed the gun harder into the side of MJs head. He could see the other men joining them on the stage, circling the hostages. There was no way Peter could get everyone out without some of them getting injured or worse.

“Sorry, I just meant what do you want me to pay for? I don’t exactly have a lot of money if that’s what you are after.”

The man’s abrupt laughter caused the hostages to jump in fright. “Of course you would try to make a joke of it, we’ve seen that you like hanging out with Stark nowadays. But no, we don’t want money. I want you to pay for the death of Lisa Foley.”

“Lisa Foley? Listen man, I don’t know what happened to her. But whatever it was, I am so sorry for your loss. I wish I could have helped but I –“

“YOU COULD HAVE DONE SO!” he screamed. Flinching back, Peter kept his hands raised to appear as non-threatening as possible. MJ was openly crying now, along with the majority of the hostages. “You were there. During the fight with that crazy scientist with the metal arms? She had been at her work in a nearby building when you and _Iron Man_ knocked it down as collateral.” His voice had dropped to a deadly growl, “They said that she must have been under the rubble of that building for _hours_ before she died. You could have gotten her. But you were too busy basking in your _success_ to care about the people you hurt!”

“I’m sorry,” Peters voice broke as he felt his eyes tearing up. “I can assure you that whatever I may have done after that fight, I wasn’t celebrating. I didn’t leave the scene till almost 3 in the morning trying to get all the survivors out. The only reason I left was because Mr Stark dragged me to the medbay. I’d broken a number of ribs and my wrist in the fight, as well as an assortment of cuts and slashes that wouldn’t stop bleeding. I spent the next couple of days afterwards on solid bedrest. I _wish_ I could bring back your sister, but I can’t. The buildings that were brought down were brought down by Doctor Ock, not us. He would have knocked them down whether Mr Stark and I had been there or not.”

The man looked torn between whether to believe that he was blaming the wrong person or not, but in the end, he settled on just wanting his revenge. “ _You_ left her there to _die._ All alone. And for that you are going to pay.”

Peter glanced at the terrified eyes of the students eyeing him from the floor. He needed to make sure they were safe, and if that meant he got hurt then so be it. It was his job. He noticed Ned sitting at the back, watching him with tears in his eyes. Clenching his jaw, he gave a small nod.

“Ok, if you get your revenge on _me_ and _only_ me, will you let everyone else go? No tricks?” his voice trembled.

The man considered him before nodding, “I suppose you could convince us that no one else needs to get hurt for your mistakes. As long as you do as we say. Now kneel down.”

Trembling Peter lowered himself down in front of the man, kneeling with his hands still in the air. From his position, the hostages were directly in front of him. He could see Ned wiggling behind someone to try and make eye contact with him. But Peter couldn’t look. If he met Ned’s eyes, even through the mask, then he might change his mind.

If he was being honest, he was terrified.

He had been threatened before, but there had always been a way out. And there were never this many people he cared about being held at gun point.

The man took a step back, pulling MJ with him, as he glared at Peter. “Take off your mask.”

“W-what? Why? C’mon man, if you’re going to kill me at least let me keep it –“

“Take it off now, or I swear we will be seeing this clever girls brains all over the floor.”

“OK!” he yelped “Okay, I’ll take it off.”

Reaching up with shaking hands, he gripped the bottom of the mask in his hands. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and slipped it off. Dropping his mask on the ground, he heard the shocked gasps from everyone in the room.

His name echoed from the mouths of his teammates. He could hear the disbelief in their voices.

He wanted to look up and gather strength from his best friend, but he knew if he opened his eyes they would all see the fear in them. He didn’t want them to see him so weak.

“Huh, you’re younger than I expected,” the man mused. “Still, don’t think your age is going to make me change my mind.”

He heard the man moving and MJs yelp as he flung her to the ground. His spidey sense was screaming at him as the man approached. He fought the urge to shake off the man when his hand reached out to grip his chin, raising his head. “Open your eyes _Spider-Man”_

Slowly he blinked his eyes open, to be greeted with the smirking face of the man right in front of him. His eyes darted over to his teammates before returning to the man. “I’ve done what you asked now please just let them go.”

“Hmmm, you know I’m not really sure I want to. Maybe you could convince me,” the man raised an eyebrow before his eyes glinted with something dangerous. “Why don’t you beg me? That might make us consider letting them go.”

Peter gulped, they wanted him to beg?

As he considered, he heard the fearful whimpers coming from his friends and he nodded. “You want me to beg? Ok, Fine.” Clasping his hands in front of him his pleading eyes met the hard ones of the man, “Please, I am literally _begging_ you to let them go. They have nothing to do with this, you want someone to blame then fine” – his voice cracked on the word as the first tear escaped his eye – “I’ll take the blame for it, but please, _please_ let them go. I’ll cooperate, you have my word. I won’t fight back I swear. Just, just let my friends go.” The tears were falling freely down his cheeks as he finished. His hands trembling where they were raised.

The man considered him for a second, before nodding. He gestured towards the hostages and his men moved to get them all to their feet. As his men moved to the hostages, the man stepped towards him raising the gun to rest against his forehead. Peter felt himself panicking but he had to make sure the hostages were out first. The men started to guide them to the stairs to get off the stage, but they were slow moving given his class were staring at him.

Ned was at the back of the group and was seemingly refusing to leave the stage. He was pushing back against the armed man, trying to shove him down the stairs, “Peter, I can’t just leave you.”

“Please Ned, c’mon man. I need you to make sure everyone gets out safe, yeah?” his voice cracked, as the tears continued to slip down his face. “Be my guy in the chair one last time, please, for me?” It was a low blow, but he had to make sure Ned was safe.

Ned’s breathing hitched, but he nodded with tears of his own streaming down his face. Turning to follow the hostages to the back door of the room, Ned kept his gaze on Peter as he left.

Once the hostages were out, Peter let out a breath and stared down at the ground. Trying to ignore the weight of the gun pressing against his forehead.

He hoped it would be over soon. He really didn’t want to die alone and in pain. But then isn’t that what the man was trying to make him pay for? For leaving his sister to do exactly that. It doesn’t matter whether Peter was responsible for it or not. He could have helped after the fact. So maybe he hadn’t been wrongfully accused. Maybe it was all his fault.

The sound of the safety being clicked off caused Peters breath to faulter. “Any last words Spider-Man?”

Taking a shaky breath, his eyes raised to meet the mans, “I’m sorry. About your sister.”

The man hesitated, obviously taken off-guard by his choice of words.

It was because of that hesitation, that he heard Iron Mans repulsors entering the building. The doors at the back of the auditorium were sent flying off their hinges stealing the mans attention. That was all it took, for Peter to get the gun out of his hands, and in a blur Iron Man had the rest of the men down in seconds.

Glancing around to see the danger had been removed, Peter let out a long breath.

The Iron Man suit landed just in front of him. The suit faded back into the nanocase unit on Mr Starks chest as the man himself knelt down in front of him. Pulling Peter into a gentle hug on the ground he spoke softly, “You’re ok kiddo, I’ve got you.”

When Mr starks hands found his hair, Peter let out a sob which turned into another, until he was soaking his mentors shoulder with tears. “I was so – scared Mr – Stark” he hiccupped.

“I know, and you have every right to be scared. But right now you are safe, so just let it out.”

His mentor kept his hold of him, while whispering reassurances that he could barely understand. Eventually, his sobs died down and he leant up from his mentors hold.

“Sorry about that, I didn’t mean to lose it like that.” His cheeks flamed bright red in embarrassment as he wiped the tears from his face.

“Don’t apologise,” using his hand to raise Peters head to meet his eyes he smiled, “and you have nothing to be embarrassed about.”

Nodding numbly, they both clambered to their feet. Glancing over his shoulder, Peter could hear the sound of the others outside talking with paramedics and police officers. They had both started to approach the doors when he froze.

“Mr Stark? They know. About me I mean. They all saw me without my mask on.” 

His mentor pulled him into a half hug as he sighed, “That’s ok Pete. We will work something out, I promise I will find a way to sort this.” Turning to exit the older man froze turning to face him, “In the meantime we should probably minimise that damage so maybe pop the mask back on for just now. There are still plenty of people outside who don’t know who you are.”

Nodding, Peter slipped it back on and left the hotel behind Mr Stark.

The students and teachers all froze at the doors opening as their eyes settled on Peter. Not knowing what to do, he sent them an awkward wave before cursing himself for being so stupid.

The students all shared a look before Ned barrelled towards him engulfing him in a hug.

Loudly his best friend spoke over his shoulder, letting himself be overheard by those around them, “Spider-Man, it’s such an honour, man!”

A chorus of similar sentiments were echoed by everyone who had seen him inside. Turning to face them all, he was greeted by smiling faces and equally awkward waves.

Ned whispered into his masked ear, “Don’t worry, we’ll all keep your secret.” Pulling back, he shot Peter a guilty face, “although Mondays Decathlon practice is now going to be an informal meet with the other school…. for a Q&A session. Sorry.”

Grinning under his mask, he felt himself chuckle as he squeezed Ned just a tad tighter, “That sounds great Ned.” 


End file.
